Directional input devices may be employed in a variety of systems including computer systems, game systems, simulators, specialized vehicles, controllers, and remote control applications, to name a few examples. Examples of directional input devices include joysticks and joypads.
A directional input device may include a shaft that may be manipulated by a user. A movement of a shaft may be used to provide a directional input for a computer system, game console, controller, etc. For example, a shaft of a directional input device may be moved to the left to indicate a “left” input. Similarly, a shaft of a directional input device may be moved to the right, up, or down, to provide corresponding directional inputs.
A directional input device may include a sensor surface for sensing the movements of its shaft. For example, a sensor surface may include a set of structures that make physical contact with a shaft and form electrical circuits that indicate the up, down, left, right, etc., positions of the shaft. Unfortunately, the cumulative effects of physical contact between a moving shaft and a sensor surface may cause wear and tear in the structures on the sensor surface and the shaft. The wear and tear of a sensor surface and a shaft may cause failures when detecting movements of a shaft with consequential failures in detecting directional inputs from a user.